The Immortal Emperor Returns C293 – Invincible

Chu Xun's words cast a pall of silence over the entire hall.

And Chu Xun looked as if he hadn't realized he said anything amiss.

But the silence was not one of serenity, at least for everyone else but him, for within the hearts of everyone present, they were all scowling at him with expletives and curses.

For all the piffle this stranger had sprouted, in the end, he unveiled his true motive: the Soul-nourishing Lotus. What was more, he asked for not one, but eight to ten of them! Did not that sound greedy at all!?

As if everyone present today, pandering and groveling at the feet of the Yan Family, did not come because of the Lotus too.

“I shall have to be frank, my friend,” said Yan Wushuang, calming the impulse to draw his steel, said with steely calmness, “Even in all of the Yan Family, we have but only one Lotus at present.”

“...” Chu Xun knew not what to say. “All right then, one Lotus it is. At least I'd not be empty-handed.”

“I'm afraid there is a misunderstanding. We cannot give you the whole. The Lotus is a sacred plant that requires to be nourished in a pool of magic at all times. The most we can offer you is a leaf or a petal.”

“A petal?! That's rather miserly of you, won't you say?” mumbled Chu Xun. On the contrary, he knew full well how rare and scarce the Lotuses have become following the anomalies occurring all around Earth that one might see it a great fortune or luck only to have one Lotus leaf.

Yan Wushuang's lips twitched again and his sword trembled in its scabbard as he gripped it tightly. Nevertheless, he managed to rein in his temper.

He strode from the table and walked to one of his attendants—an elderly man clutching a chest fashioned from jade and he unlid it.

Brilliant, iridescent lights flooded out from inside the little chest, accompanied by the thick, pungent aroma of medicinal herb, mystifying every pair of eyes that beheld the spectacle with awe.

A leaf, shiny and glistening with life, unfurled itself before everyone.

“Why, thank you so much!” said Chu Xun flagrantly, reaching his arms to take the box.

Instead, Yan Wushuang angrily slammed the small chest shut and shoved it back into the hands of his elderly attendant.

“This leaf is the grand prize for the contest today, my friend. Defeat everyone here, and it shall be yours,” said Yan Wushuang, his decision to kill Chu Xun now made.

“Come on, Master Yan,” Chu Xun persuaded playfully, “Can't you just gift me one of this, as a token of friendship?”

Yan Wushuang hoped he could unhear those words. Friendship?! This sack of straws should count himself lucky I hadn't drawn my sword yet!

“Hmm... Forget it then. I don't want it anymore. I'm a pacifist; a man of peace and mercy. I'd feel guilty of hurting others in a fight.”

What?!

Even Yao Baiyue had the sudden impulse to splash her wine at Chu Xun's face.

More so, for the rest of the crowd of warriors seated around them. Deep inside, every single one of them was hurling curses and insults at Chu Xun. “Pacifist?! A man of peace and mercy?! As if you are worthy of such a description! You, a man who had just killed four men in cold blood!”

All the same, everyone here unanimously coveted the Lotus leaf.

“How about a little game, friend. An innocent contest of our skills without spilling blood,” suggested Zang Fengling.

“Nope, I'll not,” refused Chu Xun abruptly.

Zang Fengling found himself wheezing with indignation. Chu Xun had shown himself to be incredibly powerful from how he made short work of the four Human Kings of the Tower. Yet he hardly behaved with the dignity and respect of a master that befitted his skills.

“What about the others? If we were to duel, what would the others do? That's not fair,” retorted Chu Xun.

Brusque and crude was Chu Xun's speech since he appeared, that putting people's noses out of joint seemed hardly the least of what he accomplished. Yet no one could contradict him. Hardly anyone present could withstand a blow from Zang Fengling, a Seventh-grade Human King, nevermind defeating him in a duel. This made the contest extremely unfair. No matter how prickly Chu Xun's words were, his words actually made sense.

A second's worth of deliberation convinced Zang Fengling that Chu Xun had sense. Furthermore, he did not want his reputation marred. “Very well, friend. How about just a simple contest with no stakes. We'll not be competing with others for the leaf.”

The Lotus leaf might be rare, but he harbored barely any interest in it. Besides, his family's fortune hardly paled in comparison to the Yans.

“No way!” Chu Xun shook his head, “A contest's meaningless without a prize. How about you offer a Lotus leaf too?”

“...” Zang Fengling felt a sharp twang in his gut. From where was he supposed to find another Lotus leaf? He thought for a moment, then he said, “Wait. I have a Crimson Draconic Ginseng, a high-grade magical herb. How's that for the prize of our contest?”

Zang Fengling produced from inside his robes a little jade chest of his own and opened it. A sudden wave of swelter swept through the room, increasing the hotness indoors so rapidly with the element of heat blazing from inside the herb that was glowing and pulsing furiously like something eager to burst out.

Nurtured in the broil of hot volcanic magma, Crimson Draconic Ginsengs grow up absorbing the very substance of the Fire Spinel; a magical herb with just as great potency as soul-nourishing Lotuses in helping with a warrior's magical cultivation.

Chu Xun could hear everyone swallowing hard anxiously.

“No,” Chu Xun refused. Yet again. “Who knows, I might be injured if I fail to defeat you. So, all I'd get is a huge walloping and no Ginseng. Why should I invite such trouble upon myself really?”

It was a sentiment that many agreed quietly. One might even applaud Chu Xun's clear-headedness even with the lure of the magical herb hanging over him like a carrot over a mule for no one should discount Zang Fengling's strength and power, or he would never have agreed to such a hefty gamble.

Zang Fengling however grimaced quietly. Not only he wanted to find out more about Chu Xun through combat, he hoped that he could also give him a good thrashing for all the verbal agony Chu Xun had inflicted upon him the whole night.

“How about this: A contest of only ten blows. I give you my word that I will not inflict any powerful blows. Take ten blows from me and this Crimson Draconic Ginseng is yours,” offered Zang Fengling generously and confidently.

Yan Wushuang and Yao Baiyue furtively shook their heads at Chu Xun. They knew Zang Fengling all too well. He was only being polite and friendly to Chu Xun, only because he did yet not know enough about him. But once the duel commenced, he would definitely strike his hardest.

Only Chu Xun sprang to his feet with brimming enthusiasm, as if he hardly noticed their tacit warning, beaming broadly, “Well then, let's get to it!”

Why the excitement all of a sudden, Zang Fengling wondered incredulously. But the dubious look quickly twisted into a sneer as he thought, was the fool thinking he can easily take ten blows from me?

The crowds looked just as elated themselves at the prospect of watching Zang Fengling fight. Immediately they scrambled to their feet, clearing some space for the duel.

“If you would like to start, my friend?” implored Zang Fengling with feigned courtesy.

“I should ask for some mercy, I suppose,” muttered Chu Xun.

Zang Fengling could no longer suppress a smile. His crimson robes fluttered, revealing a pair of hairy legs, the gross sight of which made Chu Xun felt sickeningly nauseous.

With unbridled fervor, Zang Fengling attacked. His hand came up and fired a blast of Internal Breath with such astonishing force that left a ringing screaming tearing through the air.

Chu Xun skipped backwards and steadied himself in the “horse stance” common to all schools of martial arts, albeit a strange variation that looked more like a farmer plowing his hoe with Chu Xun thrusting both his arms forward with a loud yell.

A terrible boom came, and Zang Fengling's shaft of energy dispelled at Chu Xun's brute strength, causing a wave of shock and force that burst out and Chu Xun staggered a couple of steps backwards.

Chu Xun had managed to sustain a blow from Zang Fengling, but the attempt looked visibly difficult from the eyes of everyone watching the duel.

“Do you not practice any cultivation of Internal Breath, friend?” asked Zang Fengling. Chu Xun relied only on raw, physical power to withstand the blast just now.

“Surely it isn't embarrassing to not magically cultivate Internal Breath? I have always concentrated my training in enhancing my physical strength and toughness,” said Chu Xun.

No one spoke a word. It was no secret that there were really rare crops of warriors who focused only on enhancing their raw physical strength and they were known to be incredibly powerful.

Zang Fengling's hand came up again and he made a grabbing motion in the air in Chu Xun's direction and the air warped. The gigantic silhouette of a hand materialized in midair and rushed towards him.

Chu Xun resumed his stance that resembled a farmer's and he charged, leaping up into the air to ram himself at the gigantic hand.

Boom!

And it worked. Chu Xun hurtled himself into the air, ramming into the monstrous silhouette forged of Internal Breath and it exploded, causing Chu Xun to fall and crashed into the ground, leaving a wide pit at where he landed.

“Heaven Almighty! This oaf's physical toughness is just unbelievably strong as an ox!”

“Incredible physical endurance,” Yan Wushuang breathed, equally in awe too.

“However it is still weaker if compared to Zang Fengling, who's yet to use any of his skills yet,” observed Yao Baiyue.

“Eight more,” said Chu Xun.

Zang Fengling scoffed. He was only just testing Chu Xun, and right now, would be the real beginning. The beginning of a quick end. He never intended to go through all ten moves to finish a boorish nobody who popping out of nowhere who intends to use him as a stepping stone to prominence.

Zang Fengling swung his arms and a pulse of Internal Breath coursed through his arm and blasted like a jet at Chu Xun with the might of a tidal wave.

Like before, Chu Xun charged with the savageness of a rampaging bull. His feet stomped hard as he rushed forward fearlessly, shaking the earth under his feet.

Bang! Bang!

Earth-splitting explosions came cascading from the center of the space where the fight was taking place; Chu Xun had managed to ram through the jet of Internal Breath!

The force of the eruption threw Chu Xun backwards, his feet digging into the ground with several sunken deep footprints trailing back to him.

That stunned everyone.

He had rammed into a blast launched by Zang Fengling like a hammer plowing through snow.

Even Zang Fengling himself could hardly hold back the aghast look on his face at the ridiculously tough endurance of his opponent.

“Seven more,” panted Chu Xun.

“Let's see how much brute strength you still have,” mused Zang Fengling viciously.

He slapped a palm towards Chu Xun, firing a blast of Internal Qi so strong that it felt like a huge wall of energy that came tumbling down on him with such force that might even flip over mountains and fill up seas.

Bang!

Another deafening explosion came, and Chu Xun succeeded in withstanding another attack.

Bang! Bang!

Yet no matter how much more power Zang Fengling used, Chu Xun emerged victoriously.

The crowd watched the duel with trepidation and dread.

Chu Xun looked miserable – his hair hanging in sweat-soaked disheveled locks over his forehead, his robes in tattered rags, and he was gasping for breath.

Zang Fengling, however, looked ghastly with the ugly look on his face. Time and time again, when he expected to see his opponent fall, only to see him surviving undefeated, leaving him howling like a madman on the inside.

“Just one more,” Chu Xun beamed broadly, “After this one, the Ginseng's mine.”

A strong intent to kill pervaded Zang Fengling's mind as his countenance darkened. “I'll kill you with one last stroke,” he brooded insidiously. “How dare you covet my Ginseng!?”

His hand came up furiously and he swung his arm.

Rumble!

Bolts of lightning danced around the air, crackling angrily as the silhouette of a fist the size of a table, forged of Internal Breath, came into form, looming overhead in midair with more violent sparkles of electricity dashing around every now and then. A huge, terrible wave of aura swept around the room as the gigantic fist began its descent, blasting all nearby furniture into bits and splinters.

The crowd ducked and fell back just as quickly as waves receding back into the sea.

“Zang, show clemency!” Yan Wushuang exclaimed. It was the Thunder Fist, one of the highly-prized techniques of the Zang Family that even he felt afraid of.

“It's just a little duel, Zang,” Yao Baiyue added as well, worried for Chu Xun, “You promised to not lay heavy blows.”

“Don't worry. I know what I'm doing. We've seen how invincible our friend is. I'm sure he'll be able to take this!”

The monstrous lightning-imbued fist came crashing down on Chu Xun, rocking the earth and causing cracks to appear.

The crowd of warriors watching the fight winced when the blow came down and retreated backwards hurriedly. They smelled Death as soon as the blow came down; Chu Xun must have angered Zang Fengling so much that the latter wanted to kill him.

Boom!

A terrible burst of energy followed on where the fist came down and a sea of lightning bolts came surging forth everywhere like spider webs, leaving more cracks on the earth with a long, perpetual ringing that numbed everyone's ears.

A cold, malicious grin hung on Zang Fengling's lips. “Serves you right,” he thought. “How dare you, a nobody, intend to use me to vault yourself to renown.”

“You've gone too far, Zang!” Yan Wushuang snapped. Despite his dislike for Chu Xun's coarse and rude manners, he in fact rather admired him for dispensing justice by killing the four members of the Bloody Moon Tower.

“What are you talking about, Yan? It was just a simple mistake. I thought he's strong enough to withstand my attack. How am I to know that he's so weak,” retorted Zang Fengling coolly.

“But I really am invincible,” Chu Xun's voice came rumbling from the midst of the dusty fog and the sea of lightning bolts.

Zang Fengling's smug grin froze. How could this be possible?! Is he still alive?!

Everyone turned petrified like sculptures and statues. Did he really?! He really withstood such a terrible attack?!

Boom!

The raging sea of lightning dispelled with a violent burst of energy, and Chu Xun emerged from inside – smoldering with blood trickling through the corners of his mouth while looking absolutely unkempt.

Yet it was true – he really was alive.

Chapter end